Embodiments of the present system are generally directed to the field of protective covers for structural components and, more specifically, to systems for providing a protective cover for bunk board components of trailers used for transporting watercraft.
Commonly, trailers designed for the transport of watercraft will include a pair or more of bunk boards, or “runners,” that are anchored to the trailer's frame. The bunk boards are positioned to contact the underside of the watercraft and provide support such that the watercraft “sits” on the bunk boards when loaded on the trailer. Most bunk boards run longitudinally from front to back of the trailer frame so that when the boat is loaded onto the frame the bunk boards extend substantially from the bow of the watercraft to its stern.
To load a watercraft on a trailer that has bunk boards, the trailer is backed into the water until the bunk boards are inclined and mostly submerged just beneath the water's surface. The watercraft can then be powered onto the trailer until its weight is supported by the bunk boards. Next, the trailer is pulled from the water with the watercraft sitting atop it. Similarly, to unload a watercraft from a trailer, the trailer is backed into the water until the buoyancy of the watercraft causes it to float off of the trailer's bunk boards.
As one of ordinary skill in the art understands, repeatedly loading and unloading a watercraft from a trailer may cause wear and tear on both the bunk boards as well as the hull of the watercraft. Also, a high coefficient of friction between the bunk boards and the hull of the watercraft can make loading the watercraft onto, and off of, the trailer a difficult task. Therefore, what is needed in the art is a bunk board cover system that protects the bunk boards while reducing the coefficient of friction with the hull of a watercraft. Further, what is need in the art is a bunk board cover system that can be manufactured and shipped in a compact and cost efficient manner. Even further, what is needed in the art is a bunk board system that can be “cut to length” in the field to accommodate different bunk board applications.
These needs, as well as other needs in the art, are addressed in the various embodiments of the invention as presented herein.